The structure and functionality of commercial beverage cans have been optimized over the years. Yet commercial beverage cans have the drawback of being unable to reclose after initial opening. Reclosing beverage cans is made more difficult by the dissolved carbon dioxide or other gases in a carbonated beverage that leaves the solution and tends to increase the pressure in the headspace. Several resealable can end designs have been proposed by the prior art, but none have reached commercial acceptance.
Consumers of beverages in plastic bottles, on the other hand, often reseal the bottle by screwing its threaded closure onto the bottle finish. This attribute appeals to consumers.
Accordingly, there is a need for a resealable beverage can that is easy or intuitive to use, has a viable cost, and is not overly complex.
Furthermore, conventional beverage cans are designed to vent the excess pressure in the can upon initial opening. Ends used for such beverage cans have a score line defining an aperture from which the contents of the can may be dispensed and a smaller score line defining a vent. As the tab is lifted, first the vent score severs, allowing release of the gases that have built up in the headspace of the beverage can, and then the aperture score ruptures, to define an aperture through which the contents of the beverage can ma be dispensed. Thus, a user simply lifts the tab to effect both venting and thereafter opening of the beverage can.
The opening device described in WO 2007/128810 assigned to Crown Packaging Technology, Inc. describes an embodiment in which the tab includes a pin, which engages in a vent hole in the end panel. A disadvantage of this arrangement is that upon re-closing of the device, a user must manually reinsert the pin into the vent hole to reseal the can end to prevent leaks and maintain carbonation (if any) of the product inside the container to which the opening device is applied.